*** Didn't these scumbags originally state reviving the nuclear program was solely meant as a source of energy for the country? ***

SEOUL, South Korea - North Korea said Thursday it is using plutonium extracted from 8,000 spent nuclear fuel rods to make atomic weapons, a move that could dramatically escalate tensions on the Korean peninsula and strengthen its hand in negotiations with the United States.

The claim came as some U.S. intelligence analysts are becoming increasingly concerned that North Korea might have three, four or even six nuclear weapons instead of the one or two the CIA now estimates.

"The (North) successfully finished the reprocessing of some 8,000 spent fuel rods," a spokesman from Pyongyang's Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by the North's official news agency KCNA. The spokesman was not named.

Accusing the United States of taking a "hostile policy" toward the North, the statement said North Korea "made a switchover in the use of plutonium churned out by reprocessing spent fuel rods in the direction (of) increasing its nuclear deterrent force."

When reprocessed with chemicals, the 8,000 rods can yield enough plutonium for North Korea to make five or six more nuclear weapons, according to experts.

North Korea has claimed before that it has completed reprocessing its pool of 8,000 spent rods, but Thursday's statement clarified for the first time that it was using plutonium yielded from the rods to make nuclear weapons.

U.S. and South Korean officials have been skeptical about the claims that the rods have been reprocessed.

The bombs also could mean that the Stalinist regime might part with one bomb, either in a test or by selling it, although a senior official and the main communist newspaper Rodong Sinmun said North Korea has pledged not to export its nuclear capability.

Vice Foreign Minister Choe Su Hon said the North is expanding its "nuclear deterrence" but wouldn't say how many weapons it has, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported Thursday.

"We (have) no intention of transferring any means of that nuclear deterrence to other countries," Choe was quoted as telling reporters in New York, where he was attending the U.N. General Assembly.

North Korea also said Thursday that when necessary, it will reprocess more spent fuel rods to be produced from the small reactor in its main nuclear complex in Yongbyon, 50 miles north of Pyongyang.

North Korea says it has restarted its frozen 5-megawatt reactor at Yongbyon after kicking out U.N. nuclear inspectors and quitting the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty in January. Experts say it would take a year of operation before the reactor can produce enough to make a new weapon.

North Korea tends to escalate its harsh rhetoric in attempts analysts say are aimed at extracting concessions in crucial negotiations.

Last month, several U.S. government officials told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity that intelligence analysts are debating the extent of North Korea's nuclear capability.

Among the issues is whether the North Koreans have refined their nuclear weapon designs so they are able to use less plutonium to make a working weapon. Some analysts presume the North Koreans have made steady advances and thus are able to use their existing stockpile of weapons-grade plutonium more efficiently, the officials said.

However, the CIA as an agency has not reached that conclusion. It is sticking with its unclassified estimate of one or two weapons, the officials said. Other U.S. estimates put the number at three or four; still others are floating five or six weapons as a possibility.

The United States and its allies are trying to persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear programs. North Korea says it will do so only if the United States signs a nonaggression treaty, provides economic aid and opens diplomatic ties.

The nuclear dispute flared last October when U.S. officials said North Korea admitted running a secret nuclear weapons program in violation of international agreements.

The United States and its allies suspended oil shipments to the North. North Korea in turn expelled U.N. nuclear inspectors, withdrew from the global nuclear arms-control treaty and said it was reactivating its main nuclear complex, frozen since 1994.

The United States, the two Koreas, China, Japan and Russia met in Beijing in August to try to defuse the crisis. The meeting ended without agreement on when to hold the next round, as Washington and Pyongyang differed widely over how to resolve the dispute.

North Korea has since said it was no longer interested in further talks.

Told you a while back that they are going to go further with this, and a NUKE WAR on the way! I am not sure if I believe in all those predictions these people claim that I have in these books and magazines, but, N. Korea was in one of them, and a Holy War with Nukes was in the future. Damn nukes is what's going to bring this world to it's knees and end it. Everyone says it's just North Korea looking to be heard, to go this far, I don't think so, they have more on their minds.

Wait a second here ppl, remember North Korea was never the threat, it was always Iraq. Of course we could always solve the solution in north korea diplomatically, but we just had to invade Iraq, i mean he could have had weapons of mass destruction as opposed to North Korea who plans to test their weapons. Obviously this makes North Korea less of a threat.

Originally posted by Creek Man of 1951..We'd all be toothless from radioactivity if you ran the show....You remind me more of the man on the moon....No offense..but you are so wrong on alot of the issues here....

Nope..N.Korea is no threat to American lives...just their own people..and nations now in range of their dirty nukes...No threat at all...Ever think about the world having a tad of security?..If we just worried about our territory man 0f 1951...we'd of been swallowed long ago...

I hate death,war..and the loss of life...I can't even watch the news anymore dude..The world is full of people with hearts cold as ice...if we took a J.W approach..man..we'd all be screwed....I'm glad some Americans got the guts...and thank God for it....

the thing is, when you're dealing with nuclear power, it doesn't matter, the world is threatened. Nukes are powerful, it doesn't matter where they are dropped their effects are wide spread. North Korea is a much bigger threat than Iraq. Firstly the chief weapons inspector was saying war was not necessary, they are effectively disarming iraq, he clearly said it wouldn't take years nor weeks, but months. Secondly, with this in mind, and the lack of finding proof that saddam had WMD which was what was proclaimed, seems to prove that Iraq hadn't been much of threat at all.
North Korea is much more of a threat, they have nuclear weapons and i would say would be willing to trade off some nukes to a couple of al qaeda ppl in exchange for some money. I think they need the money more than the nukes. So from this perspective, north korea IS more of a threat.

And please prove me otherwise on the so many issues that i'm apparently wrong.

Originally posted by Man of 1951 the thing is, when you're dealing with nuclear power, it doesn't matter, the world is threatened. Nukes are powerful, it doesn't matter where they are dropped their effects are wide spread. North Korea is a much bigger threat than Iraq. Firstly the chief weapons inspector was saying war was not necessary, they are effectively disarming iraq, he clearly said it wouldn't take years nor weeks, but months. Secondly, with this in mind, and the lack of finding proof that saddam had WMD which was what was proclaimed, seems to prove that Iraq hadn't been much of threat at all.
North Korea is much more of a threat, they have nuclear weapons and i would say would be willing to trade off some nukes to a couple of al qaeda ppl in exchange for some money. I think they need the money more than the nukes. So from this perspective, north korea IS more of a threat.

And please prove me otherwise on the so many issues that i'm apparently wrong.

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NK is not currently slaughtering its own people. NK is not harboring terrorists or keeping camps to train terrorists. NK was not given 12 years to abide by UN resolutions.

You say they'd be willing to trade nukes with Qaeda, do you have any proof of this? And if it does ever happen, surely you'll see swift action taken.

You're running in circles looking for anything you can to bash America, and quite frankly, you're starting to look a bit foolish. First you'll argue that we shouldn't "interfere" with other countries, then you'll argue how we didn't do enough to stop a potential threat.

How about while we are busy taking care of Afghanistan and Iraq, the Canadians take care of the issue with North Korea? Oh, you say Kim Jong will laugh at you? LOL

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